Is the GTX 680 worth the money? I am considering buying the MSI GeForce GTX 680 1058MHz 2GB PCI-Express 3.0 HDMI Twin Frozr for £400 instead of the Sapphire Technology ATI Radeon 7870 1000MHz 2GB PCI-Express 3.0 HDMI for £250 what do you guys think? I don't play BF3 of COD i do play games like skyrim, gta, mafia 2 etc.
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GeForce GTX 680 How good is it?
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Soldato
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Considering the price difference I'd get a 670,
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_670/28.html
Nearly the same performance, and can be overclocked to 680 performance.
This one has a good cooler:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-095-GI
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There is no doubt that the 680 is a good card, arguably the best single gpu (trading blows between 7970)
For the current price, tho, why not get a 7970?
Most people would reccomend the 7970 Lightning over any 670 card, whilst the 670 is generaly a good overclocker, so is the 7970 and offering the more performance than stock 680 and the same performance as an OC 680.
379.99 on the offer, ETA was today for delivery, absolutely staggering price and cannot be beaten with the prices of 670's being around the same or a few quid less.
For the current price, tho, why not get a 7970?
Most people would reccomend the 7970 Lightning over any 670 card, whilst the 670 is generaly a good overclocker, so is the 7970 and offering the more performance than stock 680 and the same performance as an OC 680.
379.99 on the offer, ETA was today for delivery, absolutely staggering price and cannot be beaten with the prices of 670's being around the same or a few quid less.
It is better, though you pay the price for the premium as already said. The performance gap between the two is so small i would prefer to either pay less and get 1x GTX670 or pay more than a GTX680 and get 2x GTX670.
One thing though that always crops up, "GTX*70 can be overclocked to GTX*80 speeds". Not really a valid argument towards it as that is almsot always the case and the faster card can be overclocked as well rendering pretty much a pointless argument...
One thing though that always crops up, "GTX*70 can be overclocked to GTX*80 speeds". Not really a valid argument towards it as that is almsot always the case and the faster card can be overclocked as well rendering pretty much a pointless argument...
Soldato
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erm... most people not including me then... the couple of reviews of the lightning I've seen have said it's no better at overclocking than a regular 7970... so IF I was going to suggest getting a 7970, I would say save the money and get a regular one
although for £340 the windforce is a brilliant card, but based on my own experience I saved even more and got a basic EVGA one which still OC's to 1200 and gives me fractions of an FPS less in actual gaming performance
Soldato
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Not entirely... a "good" 680 will OC to close to 1300, but if you get unlucky you might only manage low 1200's... a windforce 670 if you're marginally lucky (as most people tend to seeing) you get 1350ish which would match or even slightly overtake the fully OC'd low 1200 GTX 680, and even the high 1200 680 it would be a fraction of an FPS either way
the memory OC's people are getting on 670's far outstrip most of the memory OC's on 680's which helps the 670 stay level with only something like 50-100mhz extra needed on GPU to match the 680
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Man of Honour
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I do agree with some of what andybird123 said, though I'd like to add that the max overclock is not always the only / main reason for buying a decent, and usually more expensive card,
I've generally bought the better cards due to the decent cooler which gives me better temps, quieter operation and also I'll only buy from companies with a great RMA service, such as Gigabyte, MSI & EVGA, this alone is worth the extra to me
I've generally bought the better cards due to the decent cooler which gives me better temps, quieter operation and also I'll only buy from companies with a great RMA service, such as Gigabyte, MSI & EVGA, this alone is worth the extra to me
No, its a very valid point.
A GTX 670 can be overclocked for free to match the performance of a GTX 680 for £100+ less than it would cost to buy a GTX 680.
In a nutshell your paying for a GTX 670 but after overclocking it you're getting a stock GTX 680 for £100 less.
The only reason to buy a 680 is if you want to push it further than an overclocked 670 which will cost you that extra £100+, but evan then there is no guarantee that a 680 will overclock higher than an overclocked 670.
There are a few people who own 670s that overclock further than an overclocked 680.
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Associate
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so your telling me you wouldnt get a custom cooled 680 for 39 pound more than a custom cooled 670? madness
670= 7950 performance wise
680= 7970 performance wise
there is very little in it, but the 7970 at stock OC will give you better performance at than a clocked 670 (which might match STOCK 680), and flip the bios + overvolt and OC the lightning as you please. As I said between the 680 and 7970 there is little in it but price (and that goes to the 7970), the technology in the 680 is interesting and probably what your paying the price for over the 7970, but there are associated issues with it as it is in its infancy.
This is not a fanboy argument nor an oppinion, dont turn it into AMD fanboy vs NVIDIA fanboy argument please. Its a simple analysis of facts presented within the OCUK website and forums. If you wish to read too much into it think of it as 670=7950, 680=7970 (a few marginalised % in the performance differences depending on which card OC's best...basically a lottery)
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see my 2nd comment above - the fully OC'd 670/680/7970 are all within 1% of each other depending on particular games which swing in either direction, 7950 doesn't even come in to it as that does fall behind all 3 of these cards by a decent margin and isn't a massive saving over a 670
you can't just declare 7970=680 and then tell someone they are crazy for not agreeing with you there are differences between the two even if you choose not to see that
for me personally, I looked at all the available options and went with the one that, to me, represented the best value... a fraction of an FPS less for over £100 less (or £80 less in the case of the 7970) represented good value to me... particularly as I plan on SLI-ing them so the saving is doubled
as I said, the reviews and user reviews I've seen on the 7970 lightning say that it isn't a particularly good OC card - yes it has lots of overvoltage features but these are wasted on chips that haven't been cherry picked for OC ability... most 7970's will do 1200mhz, which is where all 5 of the Lightnings I've seen reviewed top out... maybe they do loads more on water but I haven't seen that posted anywhere to confirm and personally I wouldn't want to risk 80 (or 160 by the time you allow for a block) to find out
I don't have a problem with the 7970 in general, it's a decent card and if you can find it cheap enough it is a serious contender... however the lightning card in particular that you posted isn't worth a premium because it doesn't OC any better than a regular 7970... which is a shame as previous gen lightning cards have been cherry picked and well worth the premium if you want to chase the maximum OC
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Worth it? Yes, if you have the money. It's the single best GPU on the market.
If you want a card that gives better bang for the buck then there are far better card. You don't need a 680 for those games though.
He's not - you are really by saying that. We all know where you stand on that particular side of the debate anyway from the "fanboy" thread that you started.
I got the OC version of the MSI card on Saturday I haven't had a chance to test it out properly yet as I've been glued to Diablo 3 but it plays that spectacularly well with no noticeable slow-down at the busiest times with 4 players on screen plus mobs spamming magic & projectiles.
I'm sure you'll be more than happy with it though to be honest
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OMG stop acting like you know everything unless you have tried all of these cards and even then you got some duff cards to make the 670 close to a 680 or 7970 when both are OC'd. This is simply untrue.
I have also read lots of reviews that suggest the 7950 can keep up with the 670 when both are OC'd due to the 7950 having lots of headroom. Much of what you read is probably stock vs OC or vice versa and hense the fanboy shinnanigans.
I didnt say that your crazy because you dont agree with my analogy, I said your crazy not to want a 680 for 39 quid more, because the 7970 is on par with 680 performance wise is most situations.
The 680 is newer, therefore if both were same price 680 would be best buy, but they are not so its price-performance ratio
Please post some links to back up your analysis otherwise what you say is just words.
Im actually a little surprised that on a forum that most people consider themselves precision builders or enthusiasts that there is so much speculation and so little inhouse testing.....
Yeah - minus the flashing capability
It's a superb value for money card in that price range. 7950 has to come down, down, down to make it viable.
Soldato
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in terms of 670's ability to overclock and comparative performance when OC'd please see my thread here;
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18403803
my opinions on 670 performance levels are based on data collected from actual end users, not potentially biased reviews
I've owned both ATI/AMD graphics cards and Nvidia so your claim that I am a fanboy just because I happen to have chosen a 670 this time around is simply laughable... if you read what I've written above you will see that I've said that the 7970 is a decent card IF you can get it at a good price and that the LIGHTNING 7970 doesn't represent good value as it doesn't tend to OC any better than a standard 7970 (again, based on actual end user data)
so you are telling me that I'm crazy for not wanting an imaginary card at a price that doesn't exist? because I can't find any retailer selling a "7970=GTX680" for "£39" more than the price that I paid for my custom cooler GTX 670
by screaming fanboy at everyone who doesn't agree with you, you are only making yourself look like one and devaluing your own statements in the process
as another example, take a look at this 680 OC'd 1293mhz (which is a very good OC for a 680) vs. 670 windforce at 1358 (which is a good/average OC for a windforce) = heaven scores within 5 points of each other = 0.1 of an FPS difference
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1694021
this echos my own testing (for yes I have tested both a 680 and a 670 personally)... my 3D monitor doesn't support 7970 which is why i erred toward nvidia this round, but if the cost/performance had been in AMD's favour I would have considered it as I intend on switching to dual GPU on a non-3d 1600p monitor soon anyway but then my own previous crossfire issues combined with continuing reports of crossfire issues in the games that I play most also put me off
7970 is a decent card, 7970 lightning isn't worth the premium over normal 7970 IMO
so how about you? I don't see any links from you supporting your opinion either... which you are entitled to without me shouting fanboy at you for no real reason
for another comparison of OC'd 670 vs 680 (with 7970 as well);
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2012/05/14/geforce_680_670_vs_radeon_7970_7950_gaming_perf/3
as you can see here it is game dependent but there are cases where 7970 pulls ahead but also where 670/680 pull ahead and where they are all 3 level within a 1FPS of minimum frame rate... it's basically a 3 way tie... so again I'll say yes the 7970 is a decent card, but my 670 at £300, for £80 less than the 7970 you posted does represent good value
for me personally, there are enough dips in min and avg. framerates that would cause caution in recommending a 7950 over a 670, unless the person asking was limited by funds and just wanted the best card they could afford (but then in that case I would probably recommend a 7850 heavily OC'd as they seem to come out quite well for the price they are)
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680>7970>670>7950...is the conclusion i came to having seen an array of diff reviews.
the intial three are actually within the same range the perf diff all depends on their max o.c.
670 defo destroys the 7950 though...
looking at the price drops for the 7970..
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-276-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=938
vs
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-095-GI
7970 all the way, plus it has a lot better computational performance, although if you want lower power usage and slightly better temps...670 is the choice...it's a close call tbh.
And if ppl have watercooled setups with those lightning msi currently at a d.c price, a watercooled one might well mangle everything.
680>7970>670>7950...is the conclusion i came to having seen an array of diff reviews.
the intial three are actually within the same range the perf diff all depends on their max o.c.
670 defo destroys the 7950 though...
looking at the price drops for the 7970..
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-276-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=938
vs
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-095-GI
7970 all the way, plus it has a lot better computational performance, although if you want lower power usage and slightly better temps...670 is the choice...it's a close call tbh.
And if ppl have watercooled setups with those lightning msi currently at a d.c price, a watercooled one might well mangle everything.
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I don't think the 670 destroys the 7950 
At stock yes but when the 7950 is clocked up (most hit 1200 core now) there isn't much performance gap. Most reviews showing 7950 performance are only clocked up with stock voltage
Would like to see a review with a 7950 at 1200 core vs 670/680 OC cards for a real comparison.
At stock yes but when the 7950 is clocked up (most hit 1200 core now) there isn't much performance gap. Most reviews showing 7950 performance are only clocked up with stock voltage
Would like to see a review with a 7950 at 1200 core vs 670/680 OC cards for a real comparison.